RECORD STORE TALES #1232: Let the Music Do the Talking? The List of Bands that Made it…and Some that Didn’t
At the end of the day, does it really matter why we got into a band? Just as long as we did discover any particular group, if it turned into true love, then the “hows” and “whys” really don’t need to be defended. They can be interesting stories, or even just an anecdote, but if you got into Kiss because you thought they looked cool, or Iron Maiden because of Eddie, it really doesn’t matter. It’s the fact you love Kiss, or Iron Maiden, that matters.
So, here are some stories and anecdotes that may give you a glimpse at how shallow I was as a metal kid in the mid-1980s. Image mattered more than music sometimes.
I had a list, an actual list, of the bands I “liked”. If I “liked” a band, that meant I’d be interested in getting an album, and would record any music video I found on MuchMusic. I still love all those initial bands that I “liked”. Quiet Riot, W.A.S.P., Twisted Sister, Helix, Kick Axe, Kiss, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Dio, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Van Halen, ZZ Top, Triumph, AC/DC, Accept, Lee Aaron, and oddly enough, Kim Mitchell were all in the original lineup.
I remember hearing about a band called Hateful Snake. I didn’t know who they were, except they were supposed to be good. They had a cool name at least. As it happens, Hateful Snake were a Toronto band that got some video play on Toronto Rocks in 1983. Toronto Rocks was the pre-MuchMusic show of choice before the Pepsi Power Hour existed. All the kids watched it, and it had a huge influence in my neighbourhood. The Hatedful Snake video for a song called “Are You Ready” was low budget but incredibly fun, and you can hear the band had potential. With a New Wave of British Heavy Metal sound and feel, and a capable lead singer with that high voice, I get a Diamond Head feel. Brian Simpson was the voice. They also had the chops, as the lead guitar player shreds a cool AC/DC style solo while snaking his way down Yonge Street in Toronto. I would have liked Hateful Snake, had I ever seen the video.
I never did see it. Hateful Snake were all but a blip in my world. Just a pair of words whispered from one rock friend to another and eventually to me, without ever having a chance of catching that music video. Still, I added Hateful Snake to my list of bands I liked, on a tentative basis, just to beef it up a bit.
It was a pretty exclusive club, and all but one artist (Kim Mitchell) would be classified as “heavy metal” at the time. Now those of you who have been reading since the beginning know that Styx was in fact the first rock band I ever liked; what happened to Styx? In my exclusivity, I removed Styx from the list and excised my copy of Kilroy Was Here from my collection. That’s why I don’t have it anymore. It probably got filed with my parents’ records and sold at a garage sale, because they don’t have their records anymore either.
It was a game changer when MuchMusic entered the music video game in 1984. Suddenly, there were more bands: Other bands joined in as I discovered their music, such as Killer Dwarfs, Thor, Autograph, Loudness, Armored Saint, Anvil and Queensryche. Loudness and Queensryche may have been the first metal groups I discovered on my own, without the help of my friends in the neighborhood. There were some bands that definitely did not make my list. Venom: Far too heavy. Motorhead: Heavy, and scary. Metallica: Mythical. I never had the chance to hear their music, because they didn’t have any music videos.
Given that I was sitting there in my basement watching music videos, it is inevitable that some bands made my list for trivial reasons. Superficial, even silly reasons.
Aerosmith: Joe Perry had a transparent plexiglas guitar in the music video, and I never saw anything like that before in my life. I knew Bob Schipper would love it. I hit the “record” button on my VCR.
Sammy Hagar: The Ferrari! “I Can’t Drive 55” was also a hilarious video, but it was the car.
Cheap Trick: The five-neck guitar that Rick Neilson wields in “The Flame”. Five necks! I had to have that in my VHS collection.
David Lee Roth: He had removed himself from my list when he did “California Girls” and left Van Halen. This wasn’t rock! But he got himself back in when I saw him in the smokin’ “Yankee Rose” video. If Roth didn’t return to rocking, he wouldn’t have been on the list.
Lionheart: This British band made it on the list as one of the first “side project” expansions to the list. The band included Dennis Stratton, the guitarist who appeared on the first Iron Maiden album and in the “Women in Uniform” video. That allowed them entry onto my list, the first of many such expansions.
Yngwie J Malmsteen: Reputation alone. The announcers on television said he was the next big thing, so I thought I better get this guy on tape. He could play.
The exclusive club that was my list grew and grew. Today it’s not so exclusive. Yet, like a band, there’s something about those original members. Listening to the original member bands of my list is always a rich, nostalgic experience. I tend to back to the originals a lot. Any chance to relive the golden years, if only for the length of an LP!
It has been 40 years since we lost Phil Lynott. To mark the occasion, Tim Durling recruited myself and John the Music Nut to meticulously document our Thin Lizzy CD collections on video, once and for all. While I clearly had the biggest collection (and size does indeed matter), I still need three box sets to “complete” my Lizzy CD collection.
Please join Tim, John and myself as we go through every album one by one, and discuss the history of Thin Lizzy from the beginning right to the John Sykes and Ricky Warwick eras of the band. We have physical CDs to marks several post-Lynott lineups, and loads of compilations and box sets too. A truly comprehensive episode, and probably the best single-episode overview on the Lizzy discography that you’ll find on YouTube. Enjoy!
RECORD STORE TALES #1231: 20 Years Ago, I Left the Dream “Record Store” Job
I woke up on Wednesday, January 4 2006 knowing it was the last time I’d be opening that Godforsaken record store. The job I once loved so much that I’d show up an hour early to review new stock had become my nemesis. It was like a chain, pulling me down every single day. I looked forward to the end so badly. The day truly flew by.
It started with the management putting out a statement that, after 12 years at the store, I was leaving. Shocked messages flooded my inbox. I was considered an original, a “lifer”. Many people thought I’d never leave. Those truly close to me knew the time was coming, but when the announcement was made, the shockwaves rippled through cyberspace. That warmed me up a little bit on that cold winter day.
The boss took me out to lunch. East Side Mario’s, if I recall. Memories of this are of a good final talk, but it also reminds me that I never truly felt comfortable around him. Never felt like I could be myself. He talked of parenthood and what that was like, and I just felt tense even as I tried to relax.
It wasn’t a memorable day otherwise. I have no journals from that day about customers throwing pencils at my head, or throwing other varieties of hissy fits. I handed in my key, walked out the front door at 5:00 PM, and I was a private citizen once again. No more discount. And they lost all the power they held over me.
I was given a giant “goodbye card”, which I kept. There are sentiments inside that I found surprisingly angering today. Comments about “cheese metal” and unflattering nicknames. Good intentions, but proof that very few people that I worked with for years truly knew me.
But you can see for yourself. For this special 20 year look back, I made a video. Please join Dan Chartrand and myself for this look back at that fateful final day, 20 years ago.
JAN 3 2026: As revealed exclusively on the podcast Grab A Stack of Rock, BLOTTO will be releasing their documentary film Hello! My Name Is Blotto – The Movie on DVD and Blu-Ray in January of 2026. With details to be revealed at Blotto.net, the award-winning film by director Rob Lichter will be available on to-be-determined streaming platforms as well.
Beloved for hit songs such as “I Wanna Be A Lifeguard” and “Metal Head”, Blotto have a long history stretching back to the 19870s and the Star-Spangled Washboard Band. With vintage television footage and new interviews, the Blotto film will have you rolling on the floor in laughter, while wiping a tear now and then. It’s truly an entertaining and heartwarming story that will leave you feeling better after you watch it.
The physical release will be a current edit of the film, as it was revised periodically based on audience reactions. All the footage and more will be included in the bonus features.
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA – Toronto Cast Recording featuring Paul Stanley (1999 Phantom Music bootleg CD You Can’t Escape His KISS)
Seeing Paul Stanley perform as the titular Phantom in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera was an experience I’ll never forget. It was fall, 1999. I remember hearing an ad on the radio on the way to work that the show was being extended due to popular demand – six more weeks! I remember jumping around at the Beat Goes On (Cambridge location) chanting “SIX MORE WEEKS! SIX MORE WEEKS!” I knew I wasn’t going to miss Paul as the Phantom. There were a lot of leather jackets in the audience. A few Kiss shirts. Not the usual Pantages crowd, but that’s what Paul did for Phantom of the Opera. He crossed barriers with it. A little later on, I was gifted a genuine Paul Stanley autograph from DJ Donnie D, who bumped into Paul on the streets of Toronto. I had a program, an autograph, and the live experience. All I needed was a CD of the show.
“They’d be stupid not to release a CD version of Phantom with Paul,” I reasoned. The London and Canadian cast CD releases were bestsellers for us, despite their prices. A Paul Stanley release would cross over to the rock crowd. An official CD never came, but fortunately somebody in the audience was recording one of of those shows, and bootlegged it. The date is unlisted, the CD says “Made in Japan” while the sleeve says “Printed in USA”. (The number on the CD, 27/110/99 does not refer to a date as the ended on Oct 31 1999.) This CD bootleg was gifted all the way from Australia, by the Mad Metal Man Harrison Kopp, who knew I had been seeking it a long time. From Canada to Australia and back to Canada again.
A single CD release with unrelated bonus tracks, this disc focuses on the musical numbers that involved Paul and skips the rest. This is probably sufficient for Kiss fans.
Being an audience recording, quality is all subjective. There is some tape warble, which may or may not hinder your enjoyment. There are people coughing in the audience; the usual sonic flaws. You can clearly hear that Melissa Dye, Paul’s co-star playing Christine, is a professional while Paul is not. He often resorts to a “rock frontman” voice to exclaim certain lines. However, Paul also does an admirable job. His tenor voice was no longer at its peak in 1999. He was still up to the task, insofar as a rock star goes. A tenor like Paul would never have made it to the starring role without his name marquee value. That doesn’t actually matter when you consider that Paul helmed this show from May to October, to positive reviews. Of course, there is more to it than just singing. There is also the acting; the stage performance in costume and makeup. You don’t get to see that here, but I can assure that Paul knew something about performing to music on stage in costume and makeup. He brought the same bombast to the physical role as he did the vocal part.
The most memorable musical moments on this CD are the “Phantom of the Opera” and “Music of the Night”, which most people will be familiar with. Paul’s performance on both is a knockout. This bootleg recording serves as a reminder that Paul might have been an unorthodox Phantom, but he was still capable, and did the job well…even if you can hear the Kiss frontman in him, from time to time.
The track list on the back of the CD is incorrect. There are 25 tracks total, provided below. The bonus material includes four of the 1989 Paul Stanley solo demos: “When 2 Hearts Collide”, “Don’t Let Go”, “Best Man For You” and the familiar “Time Traveler”. These are followed by a 1978 interview in seven parts. An odd potpouri of bonus material to be sure, but such is the liberty of bootleg recordings.
“When 2 Hearts Collide” belies the late 80s recording date with its ballady keyboard direction. It sounds like a Journey ballad, but it wouldn’t have done Kiss much good back then, when fans were tiring of ballads. Good chorus and would probably benefit from a quality official release so we can really appreciate Paul’s singing. “Don’t Let Go” is another ballad, but more in that “power ballad” mold, with a blaring chorus. Just like every band was doing in 1989. It could have been a hit, or it could have been forgotten. Either way, Paul should do his own “Vault” release and get this stuff out there in better quality. “Best Man For You” is, you guessed it, a ballad. It sounds like something related to “Reason to Believe” from Crazy Nights. Fortunately, the last and best song “Time Traveler” did get an official release on the Kiss Box Set. This one actually rocks! In that late 80s way, with a drum machine thudding away where you wish it was Eric Carr. The tape sounds slightly sped up from the official release. (It happens when it’s tape-based bootlegs.)
Finally the 1978 Paul interviews aren’t too action-packed. They lack the question portions of the recordings. The subject is Paul’s 1978 solo album, and what Paul was looking to accomplish. (Sing more, apparently!) He was also hoping to appeal to all Kiss fans, and new fans too. He also hopes that none of the four solo albums would disappoint the fans. That didn’t happen, but then there is some praise for the late great Bob Kulick and the other players on the record. He also prophesizes that one day, Kiss will become an institution. Was he right? In total, it’s 8 and a half minutes of interview.
A worthwhile purchase if you can find a copy. There isn’t much in terms of 1999 Phantom recordings out there, and this might be the best of them.
3/5 stars, balancing collectability and sound quality. Still a must for Paul fans.
1. Overture
2. Angel Of Music / The Mirror / Phantom of the Opera
3. Music of the Night
4. I Remember / Stranger Than You Dreamt It
5. The Phantom’s Instructions
6. The Phantom Threats
7. The Phantom Attacks
8. All I Ask Of You
9. Masquerade
10. Wandering Child
11. Let My Opera Begin
12. The Point of No Return / All I Ask Of You
13. Down Once More
14. Finale
15. Paul Stanley – When 2 Hearts Collide
16. Paul Stanley – Don’t Let Go
17. Paul Stanley – Best Man For You
18. Paul Stanley – Time Traveler
19. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 1
20. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 2
21. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 3
22. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 4
23. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 5
24. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 6
25. Paul Stanley Interview 1978 Pt. 7
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Special 🅻🅸🆅🅴 Episode
Episode 132: Blotto’s Back!
What a way to kick off a happy new year! Please welcome back to the show, and live for the first time on Grab A Stack of Rock: It’s Blotto!
The guys have had an incredible year. With the release of Hello! My Name Is Blotto – The Movie!, Blotto and director Rob Lichter have attended numerous premieres and film festivals. They have been presented with awards, and recognized for their talent and humour. Again, what a year they have had!
With everything that has happened, the only way to cap it off right was to have the band back on Grab A Stack of Rock to celebrate. With the movie out, we have so much more to talk about! We’ll be asking followup questions. We’ll be talking about the film festivals and celebrations of Blotto history. We’ll ask about release plans of The Movie and anything else you want to know about. This will be a live episode, so ask your questions.
Harrison “Blocko Blotto” will be co-hosting this interview, and will meet Blotto face to face for the first time. They will finally get to meet the guy who made them into Lego minifigs. This will be exciting.
Friday January 2 at 7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic. Enjoy onYouTubeorFacebook.
Feast or famine: Led Zeppelin have always been weird with their archival releases. There are numerous valid complaints about the release of this live EP, sourced from their 1975 Earls Court and 1979 Knebworth concerts. Why not just release the whole shows, as they were on the DVD set? Why not indeed? We have no good answers to that, so instead we’ll focus on what we did get: a smoking hot live EP by Led Zeppelin, including a magnificent “Kashmir”. It also tickles the nostalgic funnybone that they simply called it Live EP. From the band that brought you a DVD called DVD, and a box set called Box Set 2. The cover art recalls Physical Graffiti in such a way that you know without guessing that it’s a Led Zeppelin release.
Of course, calling it an EP is a matter of perspective. At over 34 minutes, it’s a live album.
“In My Time of Dying” was played fourth at Earl’s Court, but here it opens the affair with a slower, more brooding tempo. Then things pick up. You know how the song goes: “Oh Gabriel, let me blow your horn!” as things get faster and funkier. Plant drives this beast with orgasmic shouts and declarations, while Pagey plies the neck of his guitar with a slide. In the back, John Paul Jones and John Bonham are so locked in, it’s boggling. With Jones playing countermelodies, Bonham accentuates the groove. You could listen to the song multiple times, focusing on different musicians, and not get tired despite the 11 minute running time. Plant’s vocal outro is the kind of bombastic exercise you expect in any decent Zep parody – but done with sincerity. This is is peak Led Zeppelin.
13th in the Earl’s Court set was “Trampled Underfoot”, but here it appears without a gap. You want funky? You got funky. Talk about love! Plant brings the love. This accelerated version is locked into the groove, with Bonham adding flair when necessary, and John Paul holding it down. Pagey is free to possess that riff like a six string demon, all before John Paul goes into a keyboard solo. At about seven minutes, they just bring the whole thing to a boiling jam. Not just a jam, but a memorable part of the performance. A definitive version of a classic.
There is a fade before we get to the Knebworth 1979 tracks. Something about late Led Zeppelin. You know they were not at their peak, health-wise, and there are tales of mixed reviews live. Knebworth was one such concert, considered a show with incredible moments of Led Zeppelin’s chemistry, and others a display of a tentative, nervous band. “Sick Again” shows absolutely none of the weakness. It was played 15th in the set. Perhaps by that time, Zeppelin had felt warmed up and comfortable?
“Knebworth was useless. It was no good at all. It was no good because we weren’t ready to do it, the whole thing was a management decision. It felt like I was cheating myself because I wasn’t as relaxed as I could have been. There was so much expectation there, and the least we could have done was to have been confident enough to kill. We maimed the beast for life, but we didn’t kill it. It was good, but only because everybody made it good.” – Robert Plant
None of that is evident to the untrained ear on “Kashmir”, which was 13th in the set. “Kashmir” is somewhat a rarity as far as official Led Zeppelin live audio versions go. The only other officially released live version in audio format was on Celebration Day, a 2007 reunion concert with Jason Bonham on drums. This sounds brilliant. There might be more energetic performances out there, but as the only live one by the vintage band on CD goes, it’ll probably get repeat plays in your deck.
As a Live EP (or album if you will), this is a brilliant way to spend 34 minutes with Led Zeppelin.
RECORD STORE TALES #1230: 101 Dumpsters: 2025 In Review
Dear friends and strangers,
As we gather and recall the past year, it is important to remember the many times we have sat here together before. Most years since 2018 have been years of change. 2025 is no exception. Always setbacks, losses and triumphs! Let’s have a look back the good, the bad, and the awesome!
Part the First
2025 represented a personal shift away from writing and more towards videos. The reason for this is two-fold:
1.The Community changed from primarily writers, to YouTubers. Whereas I used to do writing collaborations, now I am invited onto YouTube shows. Collaborations abounded in 2025! I became a regular on The Contrarians Live, with a total of 27 episodes in 2024-25 (Full list of 27 episodes can be found by clicking here). Many of these included Martin Popoff – pinch my younger self! I also did several episodes of Rock Daydream Nation with Peter Kerr, My Music Corner with Johnny Metal, Tim’s Vinyl Confessions with Mr. Durling, Darcyska with D’Arcy Briggs, Grant’s Rock Warehaus with Mr. Arthur, Slogan’s Rock and Metal Extravaganza with Sidney and sometimes Logan, Rock Show Critique with Joey Suto, Off the Charts with Dan Chatrand, and of course, a couple amazing episodes on The Collection with Mr. John T. Snow (more on that later). The biggest channel I appeared on in 2025 was Pete Pardo’s Sea of Tranquility. I did two episodes with them, both hosted by Jamie Laszlo. This has kept me well busy!
2.50 Years of Iron Maiden. We debuted on January 10, 2025 and are still rolling with the Maiden! We’ll be done mid-2026.
It has been an incredible year creatively. There is a lot to be proud of. Videos appeal to a different audience than written articles, and so we’ve lost people along the way, but one must always follow their creative muse. I have been making videos since 1989. With the tools we have now, it is an old burning passion that is now easy to follow. There were still written some reviews in 2025, and there will be in 2026, but I must go where the wind takes me. I’m not fighting it or questioning it anymore. I’m just doing what I want to do. Music always finds its way into everything I do.
Part the Second
We can’t talk about 2025 without talking about our dive back into interviews! Lacking confidence, I swore them off a while ago. Not including people that I consider friends, such as Robert Lawson and Tim Durling, 2025 was primarily dominated by six interviews, in chronological order:
1.Blotto: Early in the year, I reached out to Blotto about an interview for their new movie, Hello! My Name Is Blotto! The Movie. To my surprise, I got the whole band and movie director Rob Lichter as well. This went so well that it created lasting friendships, our own “Blotto” names (Kitchener and Blocko Blotto), and a second interview coming in 2026. This gave me the confidence I needed to do more.
2.Alan Niven: Thank you John T Snow from 2Loud2OldMusic for inviting me to co-host his interview with former Guns N’ Roses manager Alan Niven. It was for his book Sound N’ Fury which has still not come out. John and I were fortunate enough to read it before “someone” had the plug pulled…and you can certainly guess who is probably responsible. What a great interview experience this was! Alan puffed his cigar and answered our questions thoughtfully and with considered wit. A formidable man who treated us with nothing but thanks and gratitude.
3. Next Up was Bob Cesca from Camp Chaos, though this did not air for a few months after we recorded it, as it was slotted in for 50 Years of Iron Maiden episode 25: Visions of the Beast. Bob was responsible for those “NAPSTER BAD!” cartoons in the early 2000s, and his love of science fiction and Rush made him one of the easiest conversations we’ve ever had. Talking to Bob gave us another confidence boost. I said to Harrison, “We should get in touch with the Blaze Bayley camp…”
4.Blaze Bayley is our proudest achievement to date, collectively and personally. With very little notice, we were given an early morning recording time on a Monday. What resulted is an interview that Harrison and I felt no hyperbole in calling “The Best Blaze Bayley Interview You’ve Ever Seen” From Iron Maiden to mental health to science fiction and punctuality, Blaze was everything we hoped he would be and more. To say we have interviewed someone from Iron Maiden, is a bucket list item we can check off. A lifetime of wishes come true. They say “Don’t meet your heroes?” Harrison and I both disagree.
5.Rick Hughes from Sword was another big one. Here is a guy who I have been listening to since 1987; even longer than Blaze by a good margin. Dan Chartrand and I were both offered Rick, but rather than duplicate each other, we decided to team up. The subject was Rick’s new solo album Redemption, but we went everywhere with this interview. Opening for Motorhead, reuniting the band, and writing with Aldo Nova: we covered it all on this excellent interview with a Canadian metal legend.
6.Tom Harper, known professionally as Harper, was a fun way to end the year’s interviews. The only thing that can compete with anyone from Iron Maiden is a guy who played on a Kiss record. Harper played bass on “Shandi”, and had a million stories. Check out the episode that my mom called the “best ever!” Even Broadway Blotto agreed!
Part the Third: Top Five Albums of 2025
The part everyone waits for every year! There is also an accompanying Tim’s Vinyl Confessions episode to go with my list, but for those who prefer to read… read on!
My music list this year is a delightful mix of genres and bands. I love that a band well over 50 years old can put out my #1 album of 2025. On the opposite side of the age gap is a hot young band out of Toronto. In the middle is a British band that debuted in the early 2000s. All of these albums are worth checking out, but please note my #1 pick is particularly special.
Here’s to the best of 2025!
5.The Beaches – No Hard Feelings
The Toronto quartet rolls on with another hit-filled new album. Cutting edge rock & pop from a feminine perspective.
4.Ghost – Skeletá
Another band that simply rolled on with another album full of memorable classics… it’s Ghost!
Another contender for Album of the Year. Reaching highs not heard since the early 1990s, Harem Scarem have a sound that they have mastered, and they continue to find new ways of writing catchy hard rock.
1.Styx – Circling From Above
When I finally got my hands on the new Styx, I knew immediately that the Battle of 2025 was over – finished!! New(er) members Terry Gowan and Will Evankovich have brought fresh sounds to the first rock band I ever liked. That’s three incredible albums in a row from Styx! Progressive rock and beyond.
Tim’s Vinyl Confessions Ep. 754: Best Albums of 2025
Part the Fourth: Personal Stuff
Another years of highs and lows on the personal front. My Aunt is in a care facility; she has a hard time remembering us. We also lost our beloved elder. Losing Grandma shortly after her 101st birthday was surreal. She’d had so many health scares and recoveries, that I mourned her multiple times in the last five years before she finally passed. I was so happy to see her make 101 years. We saw her on her birthday, and that was the last time we saw her. I gave her eulogy, and some people say it’s the best public speech I ever gave. Highs and lows!
There were a ton of big changes and challenges at home in 2025. Renovations, which I’ve been talking about for years, have finally commenced! New windows and doors are installed, and more purging of belongings we didn’t need. I established a home office for working remotely. That is probably the biggest change at home in 2025. I haven’t commuted anywhere in a month now. This has drastically altered my mental health, as I navigate new routines. Fingers are crossed!
2025 also represented a new personal peace. Trying to be a better person year after year, I endeavored to put the past behind me and reach out to some old friends. To my surprised delight, one of them reconnected with me, and we are friends again. The one that I once publicly said would never talk to me again, has been back in my life for a year. Another declined my olive branch, but I’ll take this win. Working towards a more peaceful life is a good goal to have, and it doesn’t mean you can’t still listen to angry heavy rock! Though I certainly can’t rock physically as hard as I used to.
One thing that I am slowly learning is that years tend to get harder as you age. We lose people, and you can never predict that the the next year will be a year without funerals. The last part of 2025 has been dominated by physical pain and anxiety. Painfully, I am forced to realize that the body breaks down as we abuse it, year after year. Physically, though I am taking care of myself by trying to eat better, and practice better mental health, my body is betraying me. New pains become familiar pains. Some go away for months and surprise you with a return later on, always at inconvenient times. This year was the year I dropped my cell phones into a dumpster, and took a dive for the worse. I am still paying for that mis-step. There are good and bad days for pain. Today is a particularly bad one. Healing must continue in 2026.
Part the Last
In these uncertain times, we can only hope things don’t get worse next year. Nobody can say what the new year will bring, but I do know we’ll have plenty of new music to digest. New tours, as Journey, Iron Maiden, Guns N’ Roses, and even Rush and Triumph roll into 2026.
I don’t want to end the year on a bummer. I can’t promise that 2026 will be the “best year ever!” or that I will reach newer and higher accomplishments. I can only promise that I will continue to follow my creative muses. I have many creative hats. I’m a videographer, a podcaster, a writer, a drone pilot, and a cook. You’ve been with me as I’ve shared my journey, on these subjects and more. Journey on, I will. More adventures. More food. More new discoveries. More MUSIC! Even years ago, when I “quit” writing about music, it still found its way into my work. Every drone video has a kick-ass soundtrack, and every fictional story I’ve ever written has a soundtrack to it (whether you can hear it or not). Music has been my life since 1977, when John Williams first opened my ears with the bombastic sound of brass, percussion and strings. It’ll never go away.
I end this year with a message of hope.
I have learned that nothing is permanent. The present sometimes feels like it, but nothing lasts forever and soon our new “normal” will be quite different from today. If I can reconcile with the most unlikely of old friends, then there is always hope. Hope for the future. Happy 2026, and let’s continue to break new ground…together.
BRUCE DICKINSON – More Balls to Picasso (2025 BMG)
A time of turmoil! As Bruce explains in the excellent liner notes within, there was a lot going on in the early 1990s. Aside from leaving Iron Maiden in order to spread his wings as an artist, Bruce ended up scrapping the new solo album a couple times. The first was an attempt with the UK band Skin. Bruce was dissatisfied. He tried again in America with Keith Olsen, a more pop version that Bruce said was influenced by Peter Gabriel. Olsen had some issues, and that record too was scrapped when Bruce met a band called Tribe of Gypsies. Immediately finding chemistry with guitarist Roy Z, Bruce started over again with producer Shay Baby, retaining only the song “Tears of the Dragon” from the earlier attempts. Most of the Olsen album was ultimately released on B-sides, and on the 2 CD deluxe edition of Balls to Picasso. The released 1994 album was heavy, and very 90s. Little did we know, however, that Bruce wasn’t fully satisfied with the final album either. By the time Bruce reunited with Roy and the Tribe of Gypsies in the late 1990s on Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding, Bruce was questioning if Balls to Picasso should have been heavier. More guitars.
Now, you can decide for yourself. More Balls to Picasso is a remixed version of the album, with guitars added after the fact, and other enhancements made using the original tapes. Given that the original is considered an important album in Bruce’s solo j0urney, it’s a risky record to revisit in this way. Yet, Bruce did have a point. As good as it was, it stands out in the discography as different; a lone rock.
The running order is unchanged. “Cyclops”, a song more relevant today lyrically, is about living in the camera’s eye. The sonic changes are immediate. You can hear the sparse instrumentation of the original mix, but with thicker guitars and an added keyboard part that just shrieks. It’s a very cool enhancement and the first clue that messing with this album was not a bad idea. All the original elements are there, from Roy’s sparse guitar to the exotic percussion that often set the stage on this album. Now there is just more to listen to. You realize, there was always room for more.
“Hell No” opens as the original did, with more percussion and more guitar chords. The bass has more thump, and the keyboard licks are a nice touch. “Gods of War” has an added “war drum” part, along with some keys that sound like howling winds. This song is one of the more transformed of the lot, though still not drastically so. “1000 Points of Light” has one of the best enhancements. In the chorus, you get a sudden guitar and keyboard duo lick that was never there before, and never would have existed in 1994. It’s much more in line with the kind of metal melodies that Bruce did later in his solo career. This hook improves the song 1000 percent, but never would have made the 1994 record.
Side two would have come at this point on the original album, which opens with “Laughing in the Hiding Bush”, never a standout song, but similarly remixed with additional atmosphere. Now, “Change of Heart” is one that shouldn’t be messed with. You don’t enhance perfection. The keyboard/string arrangement is a nice touch, but the original is just too ingrained. Its sparse arrangement was part of what gave it such lonely impact. Now it sounds less special. Less unique. Less like a dark room with a sole occupant. On the other hand, “Shoot All the Clowns” (which was a single) is much improved. The song always felt a little cringey, with Bruce doing that rap part. Now, with a horn section added, it makes much more sense. A solid improvement. “Fire”, meanwhile has more going on with the guitar and bass, and feels more engaging. There are also what sounds like keyboards playing horn-like parts. Moving on to the blazing “Sacred Cowboys”, this one would be difficult to improve upon. Bruce’s double-tracked vocal on the original was so hypnotic. This remixed version sounds strangely nasal. Finally, “Tears of the Dragon” is another sacred song that you don’t want to mess around with. The added string-like keys don’t really add. Once again, the original was already perfect and this new one is like Bruce’s version of Drastic Symphonies. Some may love it, but the original will remain the go-to for most.
Two added “live in the studio” bonus tracks are included. Previously unreleased, these are heavy versions that should have been issued last time they released this album! Bruce absolutely wails on “Gods of War”. “Shoot All the Clowns” meanwhile gives you something to compare the horn version with, but Bruce’s vocals are very different on the verses. They’re actually cooler here.
What this sounds like is Bigger Balls to Picasso. It’s the same album. With a couple exceptions, what we loved about the original record is still here. In the liner notes, Bruce talks about being most comfortable in a “band” situation, rather than just with a bunch of hired musicians. This sounds like the same band, but bigger. It’s basically the Balls to Picasso band, as if they added a backing guitarist and a keyboardist and went out to play the songs live in the new configuration. Some songs lose in the exchange, but more end up sounding better. That’s it in a nutshell.
SAMMY HAGAR & THE BEST OF ALL WORLDS BAND – The Residency (2025 Big Machine Rock)
Chickenfoot are back! A rose by any other name, right? Nothing wrong with it. Nothing at all. It would have been nice if there was some kind of official Van Halen tribute show, but since nobody else wanted to do it, it’s up to Sammy. The songs deserve to be kept alive, both Sammy and Roth eras. There are only two Roth songs here, but we didn’t expect more. Recorded in Vegas during April and May 2025, the album was produced by Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Chris Lord-Alge.
The truth is that when Michael Anthony sings those backing vocals, things just sound a little Van Halen-y. Joe Satriani is one of the only guys in the world I’d want to hear play Van Halen songs besides Eddie himself. Sure, Joe doesn’t play the same. Eddie was freewheeling and improvisational. Joe is schooled and plays with forethought. He is more than capable of pulling Eddie’s tricks and trademarks, but tends to stay away from slavish imitation. He may do a pick scrape exactly where Eddie did it on “Top of the World”, but he doesn’t necessarily play all the hooks and fills exactly as Ed did. He usually plays them close enough that the solos are true to the original while not being exact copies. In other places, he goes off into jazzy territory that wouldn’t have been explored before. That is really the way it should be when it comes to a tribute to the greatest guitar player who ever lived. He wouldn’t want to hear Joe imitating him, either.
Kenny Aronoff is one of the best drummers suited around, always in demand. It would have been nice if Jason Bonham was still around, but Kenny might be better suited to the Van Halen material (listen to him on “Summer Nights”). Adding those necessary backing keyboards (and guitars and vocals) is Rai Thistlethwayte, from Australia’s Thirsty Merc. Normally he’s a frontman and hitmaker unto himself, but this is a pretty tempting gig to take.
As for Sammy himself, Hagar is one of the most reliable figures in all of hard rock. Barely aging as the decades pass, and always releasing new music and touring behind it, Sammy Hagar is rock and roll’s unsung stalwart. He may often say too much, but on stage, he’s still in great shape. Now, the songs are detuned a little bit to accommodate the aging human voice. This is unavoidable.
The live album opens with the tribute to Eddie aptly called “Encore, Thank You, Goodnight”. (The studio version is on a rare 7″ single that is very hard to find.) Joe Satriani plays several licks that are in homage to Edward the Great. Simple but poignant lyrics like “Since you’ve been gone, things don’t feel the same.” It’s a decent enough song, but likely wouldn’t have attracted much attention if not for the words. Decent song but only notable for its lyrics and intent. It would not have been a standout on either of the two Chickenfoot albums.
It soon becomes evident that this album is as much a tribute to Sammy as to Eddie. There are five Sammy solo hits included: “One Way To Rock” (which admittedly Van Halen played live on the 5150 tour), “Eagles Fly” (unnecessary), “Mas Tequila!” (almost insulting considering that Eddie disapproved of Sammy promoting his tequila while on tour with Van Halen), “Heavy Metal” (which Van Halen never played live) and “I Can’t Drive 55”. Contrast this with the two David Lee Roth era songs included: “Panama”, and “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” (which Sammy doesn’t even sing; Rai does!). Not even “Jump”, which Van Halen released as a live single with Sammy singing. Throw in Montrose’s “Rock Candy” and it’s clear this isn’t entirely about the mighty Van Halen.
The setlist includes a few delights. “There’s Only One Way to Rock” gives Joe a chance to really stretch out. “Humans Being” was neglected by Van Halen, but this band does a great live version of it. The only shame is that due to the decades past, Sammy doesn’t sing it in that monotone rasp. Joe though, wow, he really nails the Eddie vibe on the guitar solo! This version of “Humans Being” really shows why Joe was the right guy for this gig. Meanwhile, Michael’s bass reminds us of why he was so integral to the band’s sound. It’s great to hear “5150” (though the title should be in quotes on the back cover). “Rock Candy” and “Heavy Metal” are awesome, regardless of the shift in focus away from Eddie. “Love Walks In” is an interesting way to close the album, but it does work.
We always like to complain about setlists for shows like this. It would probably have been appropriate to drop “Eagles Fly” and “Mas Tequila!” in favour of other songs (definitely not “Little White Lie”). Anything to represent the Balance album would be welcome. Sammy even could have included something from I Never Said Goodbye, an album that Eddie played bass on and co-produced. That said, the album remains a solid listen.
Some diehards (or those who claim to be) won’t give The Residency a chance, but any fan of these musicians will love to hear how they interpret the works of Van Halen. Pretty satisfying.
mikeladano.com 